US
The British historian Arnold Toynbee once described America as bring "a large, friendly dog in a very small room. Every time it wags its tail, it knock over a chair."
You can't really argue against such a statment, can you? Would you want to do so?
I, for one, do not wish to contest the description because there is so much, good-natured Truths contained there in.
It is so accurate to see the United States - us , that is - "us" - as if we were, indeed, a large, wooly, big-boned, rather akward dog earestly seeking friendship and comradely associations -not only with other dogs, but with do the dogls enemies such as cats et cetera. Most of all the big, happy, tail-wagging dog seeks comfort and alliance with its master or peers and other human beings with whom he comes in contact even casually.
The trouble is often that the big friendly by his expressive eagerness comes on a bit too strong at times children, women and grown men shy away from him or her as being too blustery and far too eager to please. The very size of the critter scares people away.
Certainly that can be said of much of our dealings with other people both here at home and overseas. We often rush in when even the angels are biding time outside other people's lives. We can see the idea in our relations in Iraq at the pressent time. We have undertaken a number of educational and social reforms, many of them probably radically different from Iraqi methods, on the assumption that we knew what is best for them. In eagerly "wagging our friendly tails" we may well have tumbled chairs and tables on which their system has long rested. We have been guilty of doing the same sort of thing here at home: we set up programs to train young girls and older women for jobs which do not exist.
Just down the block from a church I used to attend, a family owned a large dog. It was not a St. Bernard, fluffy and soft; not a sleek Great Dane, but a big, rusty-red, short-haired, slack-jawed and clumsy monster of a dog. He was gentle giant, but stranger did not know that and when he turned up and church socials on church's small lawn, he got everyone's attention. He wagged his tail with unending vigor, went rapidly from one person to another seeking attention. He welcomed every morsel of foodstuff tossed his way and accepted them with bounding shows of gratitude by begging for more. He was just the size that would not fit under the usual card tables used at such lawn socials...so down they would go and chairs next to them, as well. If he liked you, he leaned against you to be scratched. Small children and old persons were literally bowled over at times.
Such a cheerful visitor was not welcome. A phone call tothe famly would bring a member of that family to give one call and a whistle and he was gone...but not forgotten.
Perhaps we should temper our presence in Iraq and elsewhere; try not to fighten the natives by being too friendly and upsetting things they find bring them comfort and confidence it their future.
A.L.M. December 7, 2003 [c-432wds]
